After local sports personality Mike Valenti’s face was burned Friday at a Birmingham steakhouse, the restaurant will quit serving flaming dishes tableside.

“He can’t do live because he can’t put makeup on his face,” said Southfield-based injury attorney Gerald Thurswell, who the well-known Valenti retained following the injury. “I think the message to be sent here is that restaurants that serve flambé dishes — whether they’re desserts, steaks, cheeses or anything — better know what they’re doing.”

Valenti, who co-hosts an afternoon radio sports talk show on 97.1 The Ticket and is a regular guest on WJBK FOX 2 News’ Lions pregame shows, was seared Friday by Bacardi 151 juices that flamed out from a flambé steak prepared tableside at Bistro Joe’s on Woodward Avenue in Birmingham.

The alcohol that squirted from the bistro’s flaming tomahawk steak dish burned his right cheek, nose and lips, said Thurswell.

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After several hours, Valenti realized the extent of the burns and checked into Royal Oak Beaumont hospital. He did not participate in Fox 2 News’ Lions pregame show this week due to the red facial burns.

His lawyer said no one should be burned tableside at a restaurant, but wouldn’t comment on whether Valenti would pursue legal action against the Birmingham restaurant.

“We’re hoping he’s not scarred for life,” Thurswell said Tuesday. “It’s sort of outrageous. He went there for a nice dinner and got horribly burned, and that’s not the way it’s supposed to be.”

Valenti’s agent, Mort Meisner — county Treasurer Andy Meisner’s father — said Valenti will be seeing another doctor later in the week for a checkup.

He said the Friday incident is unfortunate and his client, who is also a longtime friend, did not deserve it.

“Mike is a guy who has that aggressive, outspoken demeanor on the air, but off the air, he’s like everyone else ... he enjoys spending time with his wife and friends,” said Meisner.

Valenti, a Buffalo, New York native, was not available for comment on the possibility of filing suit in Oakland County Circuit Court. Valenti graduated from Michigan State University.

Bistro Joe’s, located on the second floor of Papa Joe’s market and catering business, serves organic and local products cooked with global influence. The bistro’s top chef, Jacques Van Staden, declined to comment for this story.

In a comment given to The Detroit News, Van Staden said the flaming tomahawk dish has been served more than 1,200 times, and Friday’s incident was the first of its kind.

“The server was just too close to the table when he performed the flaming tomahawk. He applied the liquor, and it apparently overflowed. ... We will discontinue preparing it this way for the future,” the executive chef told the News.